SONGWRITING
ART IN THE AGE OF “ ACCESSIBILITY ” | Kevin MacDougall
In writing songs for sacred spaces and worship uses , a lot of people — whether other musicians , pastors , or even congregants — have historically warned songsmiths not to be too creative .
Okay , so they might not phrase it that way , but that ’ s what they mean .
It ’ s always the same old refrain : “ That ’ s good ; but what about accessibility !” Or , “ It needs to be accessible or it ’ s not for the church .”
The problem there , of course , is that different people have different ideas about what ’ s accessible . Accessibility isn ’ t a fixed , objective measurement — people define it with their own subjective sensibilities .
For a long time I ’ ve sensed that “ accessibility ”— rather than being a safeguard — can easily become an obstacle to worshipful expression through musical art , as the insistence on it as a guiding principle typically discourages artistic expression , and quenches any flame of genuine creativity .
Fearful appeals to “ accessibility ” become a way of saying , “ You ’ re writing this for God and for the church ; not for yourself . You stay out of it .”
As someone who feels like I ’ ve been battling the Accessibility Dragon for most of my life , I wish more people understood how strange that logic is .
It ’ s like saying you should write something deeply beautiful and meaningful — only be careful not to do anything YOU find deeply beautiful and meaningful . Whatever you assume “ musically limited ” people can handle , do that . Make everyone suffer through your attempts to craft music for whatever the lowest common denominator is that exists in your mind . That ’ s how we ’ ll change lives !
Sure it is .
It ’ s a sad thing to expect of a songwriter , and a sad thing to herald as spiritual or virtuous .
Telling an artist to produce art without the art reflecting their specific artistry is a fundamentally bizarre request , but songwriters get bombarded with such expectations often . Especially in church where writing for worship is concerned . It feels like being a painter and being told you have to make the kind of art that goes on hotel walls because that ’ s the only kind allowed . And yet , at the same time , it better be special . It better really reach and move people .
That ’ s just not how creation works .
No one wins under the compulsion to avoid making art that ’ s too … arty .
Hotel Art doesn ’ t exist to move or inspire you . It ’ s meant to stay out of the way and evoke an approximation of something it doesn ’ t actually want to be . It ’ s the suggestion of artistry , not